Microsoft, Meta, Oracle, Amazon and Alphabet made commitments of around US$1.09 trillion (R$5.6 trillion) in future payments, mainly to rent data processing centers - known as data centers - that will be used to expand artificial intelligence (AI). According to information from Reuters, these contracts have not yet come into effect, but they show that a significant portion of technology giants' investments in AI are already guaranteed. As the facilities are not yet ready for use, these commitments do not appear as debts on the companies' financial statements. If the demand for artificial intelligence continues to grow, these data centers will be key to expanding the offering of cloud computing services, used to store data and run AI applications. But if that growth slows, companies could be locked into expensive, long-term contracts to maintain structures that may not be fully utilized. Artificial intelligence gains ground as a competitive differentiator in companies Artificial Intelligence The amount committed is almost four times greater than the approximately US$ 285 billion (R$ 1,464.9 trillion) in rental contracts that already appear as obligations on companies' balance sheets, according to a Reuters survey based on company documents. The difference occurs because of accounting rules. Even after signing a lease, a company typically only records this obligation as a debt when the property or facility becomes available for use. Until then, it only informs future payments in the explanatory notes that accompany the financial statements. These commitments are not hidden and may have already been considered by risk rating agencies. Still, the volume draws attention because it reveals the size of the expansion of infrastructure for AI that does not yet appear in companies' main financial metrics. This does not mean, however, that the US$1.09 trillion can be added directly to the companies' debt. The value represents expected payments over many years. Debts recorded in the balance sheets are calculated by the equivalent value of these payments at the current time, following accounting criteria. Oracle office in Dubai Oracle /Disclosure Oracle concentrates the greatest risk Among the companies analyzed, Oracle is the one with the highest concentration of future commitments. The company reported US$260 billion (R$1,336.4 trillion) in contracts that have not yet come into effect, almost seven times more than the US$37.9 billion (R$194.8 billion) already recorded on its balance sheet. Most of these contracts are linked to data centers that are expected to come into operation between fiscal years 2027 and 2029 and have a duration of 15 to 19 years. Oracle itself warned that there is a risk: the terms, prices and conditions of these contracts may not coincide with the contracts signed with its customers. If some of these customers fail to renew their services or fail to make payments, the company may continue to bear the costs of the data centers. According to Reuters calculations, Oracle's debt was equivalent to around 4.4 times Ebitda - an indicator that measures a company's operational cash generation capacity - at the end of May. When rental contracts already recorded on the balance sheet are also considered, this ratio rises to approximately 5.7 times. The risk rating agency S&P Global Ratings stated that it has already included the US$260 billion (R$1,336.4 trillion) in Oracle's future contracts in its analysis of the company's debt and expects this indicator to be around 4.4 times Ebitda in fiscal year 2027. How much each company has already committed Microsoft leads the list, with US$329 billion (R$1,691.06 trillion) in future contracts, compared to US$88.5 billion (R$454.89 billion) already recorded on its balance sheet. Meta reported US$279 billion (R$1,434.06 trillion) in contracts not yet started and, in July, signed another US$68 billion in agreements for new data centers. As a result, the total known commitments of the five companies reach approximately US$1.16 trillion (R$5.96 trillion). Alphabet reported US$85.2 billion (R$437.9 billion) in futures contracts, while Amazon declared US$137.2 billion (R$705.208 billion). In the case of Amazon, the comparison is less direct because this value includes not only data centers, but also lease contracts for warehouses, offices, aircraft and vehicles.